25 – October – 2009

Brick Lane

I live very close to Brick Lane, which most people who aren’t from London will recognize from the myth of great curry (if they recognize it at all). While there are loads of Indian and Bangaladeshi restaurants on Brick Lane, they’re pretty mediocre, although they offer cheap prices. There’s also a passable Mexican (more like Tex-Mex) restaurant there as well, which I experienced Friday.

At night, especially on the weekends, it reminds me a bit of what I’d imagine Williamsburg would feel like if they effectively shrank Bedford Avenue. Not so much because of the feel of the restaurants and such, but because of the people – a lot of London’s version of hipsters. A lot of drunk people. And the occasional mini cab attempting to drive through what is essentially a pedestrian thoroughfare at that point.

On the weekends during the day its full of a ton of different markets. There are these amazing food stalls with cheap and very tasty food – Mexican, Indian, Chinese, Moroccan, Ethiopian. Everything. And loads of stalls where people sell their homemade wares and other things. Plus vintage stores (which are there during the week as well) seem to expand and pop up in different spaces. Today I found a coffee shop that has really comfortable seating, makes a decent cup of hot chocolate, and just has a generally relaxed atmosphere. It may become my new study locale on Tuesdays and Thursdays (i.e., the days when I don’t have to go to campus).

Just above where the main part of Brick Lane ends there’s an arts and theater space that shows first run movies but also has free jazz on Sundays and hosts other events.

It’s great to be so close to such a vibrant neighborhood.

It’s been a month? Really?

Written by Ashley Kelmore, Posted in Adventures

I moved here just over a month ago, and I’ve been able to do a lot in that month. I’m really enjoying my program, and I’m loving this city. There’s so much to do and see, and I’m lapping it all up.

This week I went to Cambridge, which is a town filled with these amazing old colleges. Seriously, they’re celebrating their octocentenial. 1209-2009! What was going on in NYC in 1209? Were native americans even there yet? I genuinely don’t know. The town is larger than I expected, and full of twisting streets and loads of pubs. We visited two: The Anchor (which is on the river) and the Eagle (where Watson and Crick announced their DNA double-helix “discovery”). There’s also a great market right in the center of town. Because my friend Dan and I went on a Sunday, we were able to see the chapel at Kings College for free, as we attended Evensong and heard the amazing Kings College Choir. Damn. They’re really, really good. The trip was the first of about 20 I really want to try to do before I leave here – pictures are below.

This week was busy, with a few extra lectures (one on post-war mental health for civilians, one on LSE essay writing and one on risk assessment in health care). The work load is still manageable, but I haven’t been assigned an essay yet. I think for all three of my courses I’ll get the questions in about a week and have a week or two to write them. I’ll have to get on it early, because my first visitor is coming! I’m so excited – Allegra is coming in November, and we’re going to head down to Barcelona for a weekend. I’ve never been to Spain – if you’ve been and have suggestions of things we must see, let me know!

Wednesday was suit night in my building. We’re kind of silly, so a few of the guys dressed up in suits, us ladies went with dresses, and we sat around drinking and playing poker. Excellent.

Saturday, however, was the most ‘cultured’ of my days this week, even including the trip to Cambridge. I met up with Suzanne in the morning (it was overcast and spitting rain on occasion) and we took a tour of the West Cemetery at Highgate. It is gorgeous and overgrown and creepy and PERFECT for right around Halloween. I’ve attached some pictures. My camera was acting up (spooky!) so I didn’t get great ones inside the crypt. Oh. And there was this eerie moment where a leaf was just spinning in the air. At first it seemed like it was maybe hanging from a spider web thread or something, but then the wind shifted and it moved in a way that suggested it was just stuck in a pocked of air. When I started to walk as the tour moved, it got right up in my face. I like to think one of the spirits wanted us to remember where exactly we were.

Finally, last night I went to Royal Albert Hall to see the Carmina Burana. It’s such an amazing piece of music. And it was performed in what is actually a pretty smalll performance space, with FOUR HUNDRED SINGERS. And a huge symphony orchestra. So amazing. SO amazing.

And now it’s Sunday again, and I need to study. But I got an extra hour in the day thanks to the surprising time change. Back to GMT.